Oh no! Naruto! Save Ino!
by demiurgic
Summary: Ino gets caught up in a crime that she didn't commit, and Naruto tries helping her. NarutoIno, SakuraItachi pairing. This is my oldest story, so it isn't that good... I'm in the process of rewriting it... Yay! '
1. Arrest Ino!

Ino was walking towards her apartment, after coming home from

a late night lawyers meeting. She was seriously tired, since it was 4

am, and counting. The sooner she got into her PJ's and into bed, the

better.

Ino walked into the doorway of the building, and a chilling

sensation went up and down her spine. She came to a stop, and

looked around. Even at 2 am, this apartment building was always

thriving with gamblers trying to get rich over night, but by the

morning, they were broke, but they kept on coming back. There

weren't even lights on. The only thing that illuminated the room was

the full moon.

Ino tried to make sense why there were no gamblers, nor

waitresses, or any lights, at least.

"Maybe it's not open," Ino tried thinking of what day it was. It

was the middle of August, so usually, busy, stressed businessmen

were telling their wives about this long, important meeting so they

could come and waste their money.

She thought of the occasion. A birthday? No, that wouldn't close

the casino. A funeral or a wedding? No, she would have been

informed. Then why was this big gamblers haven not thriving as

usual?

Ino walked upstairs, and went to her room. Still pondering what

could have happened that she had missed, she had a long bath, got

changed into her PJ's, and went to bed. Maybe I missed a memo, Ino

thought as she fell asleep.

When she awoke, there was a man poking and prodding around

her room. Ino gasped and knew that her hair wasn't very neat in the

morning. More importantly... There was a man sneaking around her

room!

"Excuse me?" Ino called to the man in a groggy voice. She

looked at her alarm clock. It was 6:00. "What are you...?"

The man cut her off, "Do you know what happened here last

night? Did you commit the crime? Why did you go upstairs when there

were bodies laying all over the hall? Did you attempt to call 911? Do

you feel any remorse over what happened? Were you...?"

It was Ino's turn to cut the man off, "What are you talking

about? What happened? And what are you doing in my apartment?"

The man glared at her. He took a pencil out of his hat, and a

note pad out of his pocket. Ino realized he was a reporter.

"Are you admitting anything?" The reporter rudely asked her.

"No, but you're in my room, illegally," She retorted.

"Ah, but I have a right to be in here. I got a warrant from a cop

downstairs to snoop around up here. And surprise, surprise, you're the

only living occupant in this building. I tried waking you, but you sleep

more dead then someone who _is_ dead," The reporter came over to

her, and asked in a nice voice, "What made you do it? Did you do it on

your own? Did someone force you to do it? Were you drunk? High?

Sober? Why did you do it? And then stay in your apartment

afterwards?"

Ino realized that this man was obviously asking her questions so

she would stay put, until the Authorities came up.

"Look, I have no clue what you're talking about," Ino said,

standing up, and walking towards the bathroom. "I'll tell you

something, and I don't care if you print this, but quote me to the

letter, I didn't do whatever you're talking about. I came home from a

lawyers meeting at 4 am, and yes, I have witnesses. I came into the

building. No lights were on, and I don't know where the switches are. I

walked upstairs, came in here, got changed and went to bed. I didn't

kill anyone."

"AHA!" The reporter shouted. "How did you know anyone died?"

"You said, and I quote, 'Why did you go upstairs when there

were bodies laying all over the hall?' And also 'Surprise, surprise,

you're the only living occupant in this building' It's obvious someone,

or in this case, many someone's died."

Ino tried to remember anything strange last night. Nothing, all

except the strange chilling sensation when she walked into the

building.

"I sensed something sinister when I walked into the building, but

that's it," Ino walked out of the bathroom, still in her pyjamas, but

with makeup and her hair brushed. "Even if the police arrest me, they

will have no evidence against me, but I'm guessing you'll find some,

right?"

"I always do, Ino," Ino was struck, did she know this person? He

didn't look familiar, besides the fact that he was one of the best

reporters in the world. He never revealed his name, though. He

reported everything from celebrities, to world disasters.

"Who are you?" Ino asked. "Do I know you?"

The reporter took off his hat, "You should, seeing as I trained

with you. How could you not remember your old friend Nara

Shikamaru?"

"Seriously?" Ino asked, her blonde hair standing on end. She

hated him in training, and she hated him now. "I thought Sensei said

you would be the best military leader ever. Did you give that up too?

You never studied in school, so I don't see why you'd become

something professional."

Shikamaru snarled, "How dare you? What are you? A sleazy

waitress?"

"I said before, I'm a lawyer. Better than a reporter," She knew

this was true, but she hated being a lawyer, it was the worst thing in

the world. She wanted to travel, to take in the sights of the world, to

feel ocean water, to taste foreign foods. But alas, her poor father that

wanted nothing more than to have money, wanted her to be a lawyer.

And so, she was a lawyer.

"I'm leaving," Ino informed Shikamaru.

He stopped her by laughing, "You can't leave, the cops will catch

you, and you'll be arrested for trying to leave the premises."

Ino knew this was true. Even if she did escape, the police would

eventually catch up with her.

"I'm leaving anyways," Ino said. She made a quick hand sign

and disappeared.

Shikamaru yelled as she went away. Too late though. She

appeared in Sakura's apartment, and saw that she was still asleep.

Ino went over to Sakura's couch and sat down. She felt her eyes

close, and almost immediately found herself being woken up by a

piercing scream. Her eyes snapped opened, and she looked up to see

Sakura with her hand over her heart, leaning against the wall.

"Holy crap, Ino," She gasped. "Don't do that."

"Do what?" Ino asked. She looked at her watch. It was 10:00.

"Oh, yeah, sorry, I just you know, had to. Life or death."

"Life or death?" Sakura asked. "What happened?"

Ino made Sakura sit down. She started out from when she was

walking home from the meeting. As she got closer and closer to

finishing, Sakura eyes got bigger and bigger.

"And so there's this reporter, and it turns out to be Shikamaru!

Apparently he got a warrant to snoop around my room. Anyways, I

left, but I know that if I get caught I'll get arrested."

"As will I," Sakura stated. "For hiding you, you can't stay here."

Ino nodded, she had forgotten that Sakura was also a lawyer.

"Yeah, but I mean, you're the only one, and I mean the only one

that I know who lives around here."

"Well, there's Sasuke, he's just up the street," Sakura started,

ticking off fingers. "There's Kiba, but he's on the other side of town.

Naruto, just down by the park. Itachi, he lives above me..."

"Aha! You can't hide me," Ino said, pointing at Sakura. "But you

can hide a wanted criminal?"

"Oh," Sakura said, blushing. "Yeah, but, I mean, come on! He

pays all of us who know, not to tell. And besides, he doesn't do

anything anymore. He just wants a quiet life..."

Ino heard the door slam, and a voice yell from the kitchen, "Hey,

Sakura, I got the stuff you needed. I'm gonna make breakfast, okay?"

Sakura blushed. Ino walked towards the kitchen and saw Itachi.

She span around, and Sakura said to Itachi, "Hey honey, we have a

guest here. Remember Ino?"

"Oh yeah! Hey Ino!" He called happily. He waved, and continued

preparing breakfast. "You want some too, Ino? I don't mean to brag,

but I make pretty good breakfast."

"No, it's okay," Ino said to him, glaring at Sakura.

Ino stormed towards the door, and said to Sakura, "You say that

I can't stay with you, but yet you're living with an S-ranked criminal?"

"Well, actually," Sakura pouted. "He's living with me."

Ino turned and slammed the door, then opened it to say in a

small voice, "Where does Naruto live?"

Sakura shook her head, and called to Itachi, "I'm going to bring

Ino over to Naruto's. I'll be right back, okay?"

"Okay," He called back.

Sakura gave Ino a pair of shoes and they left into the warm

morning air.


	2. Safe For now

They were walking towards the park, when Sakura led Ino to a

huge house surrounded by large red pines. Sakura walked up the

winding path, and rang the doorbell.

The door opened to reveal a robed Naruto with wet hair. He

seemed to have just come out of the shower.

"Hey! It's Sakura, and... And, uh, hold on... Sorry, I know this... Ino

right?" Ino nodded. "Hey! Come on in! Come in, come in!" Ino and Sakura

walked into a beautifully carved front hall, and Naruto ushered them into

a large room, with huge windows facing the sun. The room was warm,

not because of the sun, but because it looked lived in.

"Ah, sorry about the mess, I wasn't expecting visitors," Ino saw a

piece of paper with what seemed to be very complicated numbers and

complex symbols on it. Ino asked as Naruto swept it up, "What was that?

It looked like astronomy," Naruto turned towards her, papers and pens

jammed into his arms.

"Nah, it's astrology," Naruto said. He carried the papers over to his

desk, where he deposited them. "I have a thing for things like that.

Anyways, enough about me, why are you two ladies here on such a short

notice?" He asked happily.

"Well," Sakura started out. As she explained why she had brought

Ino over, Naruto's happiness seemed to edge away a little.

"And so, that's why I brought her here. You're the only one that I

know who has more authority than the police."

Naruto nodded. He looked at Ino. "Alright," He said, no sign of his

happiness gone from his voice. "You can stay here until they clear you,

and find the real criminal."

Ino's face brightened. "Really?" Naruto nodded. She was grateful.

"I think I've done all I needed to do here," Sakura said as she stood

up. Naruto caught her arm, and led her to the entrance hall. He closed

the door slightly, and Ino stood up to here what they were saying.

"Look, even if she gets caught, under my protection, I'll have no

more authority than you would," Naruto said, in a low voice.

"Well, then," Sakura said, in an equally low voice. "Don't let her

leave." She turned and gently closed the door on Naruto. He turned, and

Ino ran back to the couch. He walked in, hitching a cheerful smile on his

face.

"Come on, follow me, I'll lead you to your room," Ino stood up, and

Naruto led her up a oak stairway, with little windows all around, so it

looked as though there were thousands of little lights surrounding them.

She studied the paintings on the wall, and noticed that some of

them were, to her astonishment, originals. She saw a painting that

looked nothing more than a few black lines, and read below it on a brass

plate, _Brushstrokes At The Whitney._

She looked around at more paintings and saw some she even

recognized. Wow, she thought. I never knew Naruto collected art.

"Where did you get all of these?" Ino asked, surprised at the

mature Naruto now walking in front of her. "I guess you like art alot,

right?"

"Actually," Naruto said, stopping. "I hate it. I don't like collecting art,

but I was pressured into it. My friend bought all of them, and gave them

to me. I couldn't do anything but display them."

Ino nodded, knowing what he was talking about.

Naruto brought her to a elegantly carved door, and opened it. Ino's

jaw dropped.

Inside was a gigantic window facing her, showing off a park-like

backyard that had a hidden door connecting to the real park, and nearer

to her was a carved canopy bed that matched the door and chairs. The

bed was probably King sized, and it had white silk-like material draped

lazily over it.

Ino walked in, studying the Tiffany lamps, and the delicate hand

sewn embroidery on the bed sheets and pillows. The walls were a rich

dark red, with a white roof and the floor was a highly polished hard wood

mahogany floor.

Ino saw another door, and walked through it. When she walked it,

she shielded her eyes from the glare of the sun coming through the

window that was over the bathtub. Polished smooth rocks were in the

floor and steps leading into the tub. There was also a glass corner

shower, for those Oh-crap-I've-got-a-meeting-in-five-minutes showers.

The rocks continued up the wall, but slowly faded away to olive

green walls with little jewels scattered around it. The roof was, like the

bedroom, white. The triangle wall lights were on, and towels were on the

racks as though Naruto had set it up for her.

He walked in after her and asked, "So do you like it? Besides me

and you, no one else has seen it. I just finished it."

Ino turned around, breathless. She looked up into Naruto's eyes

and replied, "Like it? I love it! It's wonderful! Who did you get to build

such a beautiful house?"

"Me," He answered, smiling. "I built the whole thing from scratch. No

other builders. Just me, and my blue prints," He led Ino back to the

bedroom. "But, you want to see the wildest thing I put in this house?"

Ino nodded, excited.

Naruto grabbed a book, and Ino looked on, confused, until the shelf

that the book was on, opened.

"Secret passage ways," He said. He motioned Ino to follow him.

When she walked inside, the whole corridor seemed to be glowing with a

soft gold light.

Ino followed Naruto down some stairs, an they came upon a door.

Naruto opened it, and they ended up in his study. Naruto closed the door,

which from the outside looked like a painting.

Ino turned to Naruto, and asked, "How did you do all of this on your

own?"

He replied, "I'm good with my hands."

"How many passage ways do you have in this house?"

"I'd say, seventeen," He said. "But if you want to find them, you're

going to have to do that on your own, it's more fun to find them by

surprise then being showed them."

Ino agreed. "I think I should go to bed, I didn't get too much sleep

last night."

"Okay," Naruto said. He led Ino back to her room from a different

stairwell. "Well, good night, I mean, good morning. Oh, well, have a good

nap."

"I will, thanks," She said as she walked into the room. Naruto

closed the door, and Ino slipped beneath the down covers.


	3. Dinner

When Ino awoke, she looked beside her onto the bedside table,

and saw that it was 2:00 pm.

She groaned and got out of bed. She walked into the bathroom,

and was about to use the tub, when she noticed clothes on the counter,

and a note laying on top.

The note read: 'Dear Ino, I have some errands that demand me to

run around town like a lunatic. I bought you these clothes, and I know

these will fit, because Sakura told me what size you are. I'll be back by 7

or so. If you are hungry, which you probably are,' As though on cue, Ino's

stomach growled. 'You can go down the stairs that has all of the

paintings down it, and take a left, the kitchen is just down that hallway.'

Ino looked at all of the clothes. He seemed to have bought her

loads of clothes. He bought her jeans, tee shirts, tank tops, dresses,

skirts, everything. There was even a pair of black shoes on the counter.

Ino picked a dress out of the pile, and got into the tub.

When she had relaxed enough, she got out and tried on the dress.

It fit perfectly. It was a sky blue dress, with pink embroidered flowers,

and came just below the knee. It wasn't tight, but it accented her body

nicely. It was a 'U' shaped neck, and shoulder sleeves. It looked

expensive, and probably was. But then again, it could have come from

any cheap store, but Ino didn't think so.

"Aw, thanks Naruto!" She whispered to the empty room. She

followed the instructions, and found herself in the kitchen.

It was entirely a cooks dream. Bamboo floors, and an Island, with a

stove, sink and counter. The Island was oak, and it had bamboo wood

chairs.

There was an extra wide counter for baking, and with glass

cabinets above. The dining room was attached, but only one place was

set. Ino went over to the table, and looked in the bottom of the china

cabinet for place mats. She found them, took out one, and then tried to

find the plates and cutlery.

When she had finished, she looked inside of the fridge.

Since Naruto took me in, I might as well make him supper. It's the

least I could do, she thought.

She looked outside, and saw the humongous backyard.

"I could go collect flowers," She said to herself. She shook her head.

"Nah, I'll wait until I'm done in the kitchen."

Ino got out some ingredients to make soup, and she found some

sourdough bread. Perfect, she thought. We can use this for dipping.

She looked around for stuff that was inexpensive, and was already

open. Pretty much all of it was, and, although Naruto was much older, he

still seemed to love ramen.

When Ino had finished making the soup (Which wasn't ramen), she

left it on the stove to simmer.

Oh, she thought. Maybe he'll order in, I'd better tell him to come

straight home. But, I don't know his cell number. I'd better call Sakura.

She picked up the phone. Maybe the police are looking for me, and

they might be listening in on her calls. I'll just won't say my name then.

She dialed Sakura's number, and after three rings, someone said

"Hello..."

Ino started saying hello, when she realized it was the answering

machine. She tried again. One ring, and halfway through the second ring,

she heard a tired Sakura's voice say, "Hello?"

"Hey, it's me," Ino said, sticking to her plan, just in case the police

really were listening in on the conversation.

"What's up?" Sakura asked. Ino heard Itachi talking in the

background. Well, no police then. "Yeah, hold on a sec, kay Itachi?" He

answered something inaudible to Ino.

"I just need to know what Naruto's cell number is," Ino blinked.

"Does he have one?"

"And why wouldn't he?" Sakura asked.

"That makes sense, okay, what is it?" Ino asked.

Sakura gave her the number, and Ino wrote it down. She said her

goodbyes, and called Naruto.

"Uzumaki Naruto," Came Naruto's voice.

"Hi, Naruto, it's Yamanaka Ino," She said.

"Oh, hey. Are you okay?" Naruto's voice was tinged with worry.

"Yes, I'm fine, I just wanted to know if you were ordering in or

anything."

"Do you want me to?"

"No, no, I'm just wondering."

"I wasn't planning on it. Oh, I'll be home early, like around 6ish or

something like that."

"Oh, okay, see you then!" Ino said.

"Okay, bye," Naruto hung up the phone.

Around 6ish, huh? Ino looked at the clock. It was almost 5.

She started hurrying. She made a salad, and didn't add the

dressing, because waiting an hour would make it soggy and gross. She

stored the salad in the fridge, and got out ingredients to make

cheesecake. She was really thankful that her mother taught her how to

make supper on her own.

She finished completely, and there was still enough time to go and

get flowers.

She opened the screen door, being cautious that no one could see

her.

She walked out to a tree and found some flowers that looked like

they grew wild. She picked two and went back inside.

She found a small white vase over the sink, and filled it up with

water and placed the flowers and the vase on the center piece of the

table.

Ino made sure everything was ready, and when she heard Naruto

come in, she called him into the kitchen.

He said something about being right, back, and then after a few

minutes waiting, he came in.

"Just sit down, and relax," He did so. Ino went over to the fridge,

taking out the salad, and putting the dressing on it.

"I really like that you did this for me Ino," He said. "I'm really glad.

Thank you. I've been meaning to try and use those ingredients, but I

never got around to it. I bought them like a week, or less than that, ago.

I just didn't have enough time to use them."

"Well, I made soup, and then I made a salad, and then I made

cheesecake. It's still setting though. It should be done shortly."

She brought the salad over and put some into Naruto's bowl, then

into her own.

They sat in silence, enjoying each others company, until the silence

got to Ino, and she asked, "So, what do you do? How do you make this

much?" She said, gesturing around.

He chewed, thinking, "Well, in all reality, it's just luck that I got like

this. I've got a stock market thing going on, so it's all good. I have a small

business that does random things, like, oh, I don't know, I just run the

money management, and the people work for me. I really just get by on

luck."

Ino nodded. She noticed all of the salad was gone, so she got up,

cut the bread, and brought it over as well as the soup. It wasn't a lot, but

just enough for one night.

"I see you're wearing the dress I choose for you. It compliments

your eyes," He said, looking up at her, as she ladled some soup for him.

She blushed, and sat down. "Thank you," She said. "I really like it,

it's so pretty. And I'm guessing it wasn't cheap, am I right?"

"Ah, now, if I told you that, you'd probably want to know the price,

am I right?" He asked her, looking into her eyes.

She found his bright blue eyes very piercing, as though he could see

the answer before she said it. She nodded, looking away, and then

laughed, "Yeah, you're right, I probably would."

He laughed. Ino noticed his laugh wasn't forced, but real. All the

time when they were little, when everyone tormented him, his laugh was

either never heard, or was forced. She liked hearing it. She hadn't heard

a real laugh in a long time. It felt good, it was like stepping into a shower

after a long night of partying.

They both started talking with ease, and when the soup was done,

Ino took out the cheesecake, and started to feel the effects of too much

food.

"Wow, this is really good Ino," Naruto said. "It's delicious. You must

tell me the secret."

"Family recipe, I can't," Ino said, teasingly. It really was a family

recipe, but nothing more then a couple of teaspoons of nutmeg, cinnamon

and ground cloves.

"I may know that secret one day though," Naruto said. Ino froze.

Did he realize what he just said? Probably not, so Ino let it go.

After dessert was finished, Naruto and Ino both decided to take a

walk outside.

"It'll probably help digest," Naruto joked. Ino agreed.

She went and grabbed her new shoes, and came back. They both

went outside. It was almost 8, so the sun was still up.

They walked around, studying the trees and flowers, and they had

a contest on who could name the most birds. Neither kept score.

It started getting to the point when the sun was going down, and

the mosquitoes came out.

Ino and Naruto went back to the house, and Naruto started the

fireplace.

Although it wasn't cold, both of them sat close to the fire. Naruto

brought up the subject of music.

"I play the flute, I just love the sound," Naruto said. "What about

you?"

"Oh, I play piano. Well, actually," Ino corrected herself. "I used to, I

don't anymore. My dad doesn't want me to be a pianist, but he wants me

to be a lawyer," She sounded a little angry.

"You don't like being a lawyer?" Naruto asked in his understanding

voice.

"Not really. At first, yeah, because it was a new experience, but

now it's just something I have to do, but don't want to," Ino said. She

looked up to Naruto, and her light blue eyes were captured by his bright

blue ones. They looked at one another for the next couple of minutes,

studying each others faces.

Ino blushed, and looked away. Naruto looked down, and said, "It's

getting late, you really should go to bed. You might want to get an early

start tomorrow."

"Okay," Ino sighed. "Alright, I'll go."

She stood up, and walked towards the door.

"Wait," Naruto said. Ino turned around. "You might want to wear

that dress and the shoes I got you tomorrow. Oh, and you also might

want to take a deeper look in your room."

Ino got excited. "Alright," She smiled. Naruto smiled back. "'Night!"

"'Night!"

She ran up the stairs two at a time, and jumped onto her bed. She

hugged the pillow, and squeaked quietly into it. She smiled, and when

the butterflies went away, she stood up and took the shoes out of the

bathroom, and changed out of her dress into her pyjamas. She brought

her shoes and dress and laid them out on the dresser.

She brushed her teeth, and started searching around her room. She

looked down into the bathtub, and she looked in all of the drawers, but

she didn't find anything.

A little disappointed, she climbed into bed. As she got herself

comfortable, and was about to turn off the bedside lamp, but felt

something poke into her hip.

She got out of bed, pulling back the covers, and she saw a diamond

and amethyst necklace in the shape of a heart, and a pair of amethyst

earrings, also in a heart. She pulled the covers back even further to find a

diamond and sapphire bracelet. In the middle of the bracelet was a drop

shaped purple amethyst stone.

Ino picked them up as though they would break. She brought them

over to the dresser and placed them upon her dress and shoes. They

matched perfectly.

"I think I like him," Ino smiled. No, I think I love him, she

corrected

herself in her mind.


	4. Breakfast Then Dinner!

Ino went to bed smiling, and woke up refreshed. She opened her

door and walked down the stairs still in her pyjamas.

The further downstairs she walked, the more awake she got. Maybe

it was the thought that she could get to see Naruto again or maybe it

was because of the smell of breakfast?

She walked into the kitchen, and saw Naruto making pancakes, and

there was orange juice and yogurt already on the table.

Ino gasped. "Naruto, did you do all of this?"

"Sure did. Sit down and relax," Naruto said, staring deeply into Ino's

eyes and smiling.

Ino obeyed, and not looking away from his eyes, tried sitting down,

but missed the chair. She fell, and Naruto hurried over, He helped her up,

"Are you okay?"

Ino started laughing, then Naruto joined in. He helped her into her

seat as they continued to laugh.

Finally when they stopped, Naruto asked her, "So, did you find what

I left you?"

Ino blushed, "Oh, Naruto, I can't accept it, it's too much. You spent

too much on me already. You gave me clothes and shelter, and I'm

grateful."

"Well, I have too much money, and I had no one to spend it on. I

have what I want. So, I decided to give to others."

"But... But... Diamonds?" Ino stuttered. "And sapphires? But..."

"No buts," Naruto said. He said this nicely, but firmly. "I gave those

to you, so accept!"

"Okay," Ino said. "Hey, how did you know that I'm Aquarius?"

"Sakura," Both Naruto and Ino answered.

"Yep, that's the one, she told me everything about you," Ino

blushed. "Even when you two were little, everything."

"Everything?" Ino squeaked. "Are you serious? I hope not

everything, because I've got some pretty embarrassing things that

happened to me."

"Like when you fell down the stairs when you were trying to

impress Sasuke?" Naruto said, putting a little harness on the name.

"Oh man," Ino groaned.

"Oh, er, well, maybe not everything, but mostly everything. It's okay

though, I've got my share of embarrassing moments." Naruto said, trying

not to sound like he was trying to embarrass her.

"Like?" Ino said, looking up.

"Like... I was... Ah, nevermind," Naruto stuttered.

"Naw aw, you embarrassed me," Ino joked. "You can embarrass

yourself now."

"Okay," Naruto said. "I was walking down the sidewalk and, well,

okay, you were trying to impress someone, so was I. This girl was across

the street, and we were watching each other, and I walked into another

person, and we both fell over." Naruto's face was red.

"That's okay," Ino said. "I've done worse."

And as Naruto and Ino both shared their most embarrassing

moments, not only did they have breakfast, they both got closer to each

other.

"And then," Ino gasped as she and Naruto were both killing

themselves laughing. "I looked around, and I was talking to myself. I was

wondering why all of those ladies were staring."

Naruto wiped his eyes, and looked at the clock.

"Oh, uh, Ino, maybe you should go and get dressed," He said. "No

reason," He said, as Ino's eyes asked the question.

Ino felt really good about herself right then and there. She washed

her hair and put her make up and sexy blue dress on. She put on the

jewelry and carried her shoes downstairs.

Naruto was already waiting, watching the news in the living room.

When Ino walked in, Naruto stood up and walked over to her. His

arm extended, as though he was going to take her waist, but it seemed

to change directions in a split second. He made his sudden lunging

movement to reach for the car keys. He picked them up, and offered her

his arm.

She took it, and he led her to a garage off to the side of the house.

He opened the garage door by pressing a button on the keys, and

inside was a burnt orange 350z, and a black Ferrari Enzo with black lights

underneath. And on the far side of the garage was a red Mini Cooper with

a British flag on the roof, and there was also a green and black Smart

Car.

Naruto led Ino over to the Ferrari Enzo and opened the door and

helped her get in. He closed the door, and a little computer in the

dashboard turned on.

Naruto got in, and switched off the computer.

He turned towards Ino and said, "You look stunning."

"Only because of the jewelry you gave me," Ino contradicted.

"I'm not looking at the jewelry," Naruto said. He started the car,

and, of course, spun the tires before taking off.

He drove around, and finally they ended up at the ritzy part of

town. He drove up to a restaurant that Ino generally ignored. A valet

came out and Naruto tipped him to keep the car in perfect shape.

The both walked inside of the restaurant, and a man came and said,

"Ah, Naruto-Sama, follow me, please." He led them to the back of the

restaurant, to a dark table with a candle on it, set for two.

He pulled out the chair for Ino, and she allowed him to push her in.

She sat in the comfortable chair, and waited for the menu. The

waiter came over and introduced himself. Ino looked at the menu, and

noticed the prices first.

Everything was over $50, even the appetizers. There's no way that

Ino was going to allow Naruto to pay for it all. She got her purse out, but

remembered she had no money. So she disguised her sudden movement

for grabbing her lip stick. When she had put it away, she leaned across

the table and whispered frantically, "I can't let you pay for this. It way too

expensive."

"Nonsense," Naruto said, not bothering to keep his voice down.

"We've had this little chat before, have we not? I have too much money,

and I needed someone to spend it on. That's not the point anymore

though, I like taking you places."

"You haven't taken me out before now," Ino said, puzzled.

"And plenty more to come," Naruto smiled.

Ino raised her eyebrow. The waiter came back over and asked if

they wanted anything to drink.

"Um, how about some wine that goes with salmon. Price doesn't

matter," Naruto said, winking. "You want wine, right?" He asked in an

undertone.

"Wine's good," Ino said, smiling towards Naruto, then the waiter.

"Wine's good," Naruto repeated. "Are you ready to order?"

Ino shook her head, she hadn't looked at the food, she had been

looking at the prices. There was a wild salmon salad that was $70 for

Heavens sake! A salad! Lettuce cost under $5! How could a salmon cost

$65?

"Um, I think, how about... What's good?" Ino asked, helpless. She

hadn't even seen half of this stuff before. But Naruto seemed to know

what they were.

"Well, I like the spaghetti and bread they have here, but you might

like the sushi, you like Oriental right?"

"Yes. So, is this like a international restaurant or something?"

Naruto nodded.

"They serve pretty much anything from any country. If it's not on the

menu, they'll make it for free," Naruto said. "But then they'll add it later."

"Sushi sounds good, but only the vegetarian kind," Ino said.

"You're a vegetarian?" Naruto asked her, looking up.

"No, I just haven't tried that before."

"Okay."

The waiter came back with the wine, and they ordered. Ino, the

sushi and Naruto, the salmon.

As they were going through the meal, music came up, and lights

came on.

"Ooh, dancing!" Ino said. "I love watching people dance!"

Naruto and Ino enjoyed the rest of their dinner watching people

dance, and when they were done, Naruto stood up.

"You okay?" Ino asked. He beamed as he turned towards her.

"You wanna dance?" Naruto asked, extending a hand.

Ino didn't accept right away, "Are you kidding?" She asked, looking

around. "I can't dance like that!" She pointed towards the floor where

many people were doing the quickstep and the fox trot.

"Neither can I!" Naruto said. He grabbed her hand, and brought her

over to the floor. He took her hand and placed it in his, and took her

other hand and placed it around his shoulders. He then took his free

hand and placed it on her hip. As soon as Naruto pulled her closer, Ino

realized how much taller he was than her.

He started counting quietly in her ear, "1, 2, 3. 1, 2, 3."

When Ino got the beat, they swayed gently on the spot. Ino was

tense at first, but then she relaxed as she realized that it was relatively

easy.

"I'm going to add one more step, okay?" He whispered into her ear.

His voice made her shiver, and she nodded. He made the step so that

they were moving around the floor.

All too soon the song was over. Ino and Naruto clapped, and

walked back to their seats.

They ordered more alcohol, not wine, and then ordered one dessert

plate because Ino said she was too full.

When the waiter came back with their Tiramisu, Naruto whispered in

the waiters ear. As he walked away, he took one of the forks, so they

were left with one.

Ino blushed as she realized what Naruto wanted. He picked up the

fork, took a piece of the cake and put it into Ino's mouth. It was the best

piece of anything she had ever had. As she savored it, she noticed Naruto

gazing dreamily at her.

His turn. She took the fork and did the same thing. She caught

herself gazing at him.

As they shared the cake and each others company, they also got

more liquored up.

By the end, Naruto was in no state to drive, neither was Ino. Naruto

paid, and they left. As they were walking out the door, Ino stumbled, and

Naruto tried to catch her. Ino fell against the wall, and Naruto fell against

her. They stayed like that staring into each others eyes, until Naruto

came to his senses, and backed away.

"S... Sorry, I disn't men to," He said, his speech slurring together. "I

meant, I didn't mean to."

"'S okay. You know that we can't drive home like this, right?" Ino

asked.

"I know, I'll just, get the person there to drive us," He said, pointing

at a random person.

"Or the valet," Ino suggested.

"Or them," Naruto agreed.

Naruto walked over to the valet, and asked if he could drive. He

said he couldn't, and then they had to call a cab.

"I don't... I don't wanna leave my car here," Naruto said, as they

got into the cab.

"It'll be fine, we'll put it in our highest security until you come pick it

up," The valet assured him, as he closed the door.

Ino slumped against Naruto halfway home, and when they got out

of the car, Naruto was nodding off as well.

Naruto tried to wake up Ino, but she wouldn't. Sobering up a bit, he

paid the car driver, and carried Ino into the house.

He carried her up to her room, and placed her into the bed. He took

off his shoes, and climbed in with her.


	5. Oh no!

Ino woke up, and looked over. She gasped, and nearly fell out of

bed. Naruto was laying beside her with his arm draped over her. He didn't

wake up, and Ino felt that her clothes were still on.

She sighed, and relaxed. She cuddled up with Naruto, putting his

head near her chest. She curled her legs, and looked at the alarm clock. It

was 10:00 am.

She closed her eyes, and fell asleep again.

Naruto awoke to notice cleavage that wasn't there before. Then he

noticed the hands around his neck, and the covers over his head.

He lifted his head, and earned a groaned from Ino. He placed his

head beside hers, and watched her sleep. He could see her eyes moving,

and her eyes fluttered.

She wrapped her arms around his neck more securely, and pulled

him closer. He accepted, and as he moved closer, he wrapped his arms

around her waist. She moved so he could, and whispered, "Thank you."

He gasped. He didn't know if she was asleep or awake.

Her eyes opened as though to answer his question. She looked at

him, and smiled.

He move up to her level and looked deeply into her eyes. She

stared straight back into the pools of bright blue liquid. She took in the

littlest detail of his hypnotic eyes.

"Oh, Naruto, thank you for everything. I really enjoyed last night, I

wish I could remember what we were laughing about, though," Ino said.

"We were laughing?" Naruto asked.

"I dunno, were we?" Ino asked, puzzled.

"Probably, that was _alot _of alcohol," He said, coming closer to Ino.

Their noses were touching, and Ino could feel his breath on her neck and

chin.

Naruto's eyes glazed over with passion as he closed the distance

between them first. Ino didn't resist, because it was exactly what she

was going to do.

Naruto separated them, and Ino groaned.

"Sorry, I don't know what I just did," He said, blushing.

"I do," Ino said, kissing him again, making him moan. Naruto's eyes

were floating in front of Ino, even though her eyes were closed. His eyes,

so hypnotic... If she could choose which were more entrancing, the

Sharingan, or Naruto's eyes, the answer was obvious. She always loved

the colour blue, and now she had a reason why she love it even more.

Naruto's tongue asked for permission, and Ino granted it. As their

tongue's quarreled, Ino undid Naruto's shirt. She kept it on him, but let

her hands roam his built chest.

Ino's hands strayed over some battle scars, but continued roaming.

Once again, Naruto separated.

"Whasamatter?" Ino asked, her voice practically glowing with

passion. "Was it me?"

"No," Naruto said. He kissed Ino lightly on the lips, and turned

towards the clock. "11 o'clock, eh?" He turned back towards Ino, "Sorry,

sweetie, I've got to get going, I'm so sorry." He lightly kissed Ino's

forehead, and got out of bed.

He walked out the door. Before closing it though, he blew a kiss to

Ino, who caught it.

"Love you!" He called as he closed the door.

Love you? Ino quickly called back, "Love you, too!"

She heard him having a shower, and then leave. She rolled over.

Why'd he have to leave? He said love you, but... But, they used to hate

each other... But, people change, Ino knew that, she used to love

Sasuke, think about him 24/7, and almost died when Sakura was put on

the same team as him, and now, Ino even had a hard time even

remembering what his name was sometimes, let alone what he looked

liked.

Now she had Naruto on her mind. She used to hate him. Well, not

hate _him _exactly, she only knew what he was, and that her parents

hated him, so she in turn, hated him. It was for a stupid reason. Naruto

didn't have any friends, any family members, no one talked to him, no one

looked at him or even smiled, and now...

Now things were different. Naruto was rich, kind, sweet,

handsome... Nothing anyone would have believed possible when he was

12. But now, now it was 8 years later, they had all graduated, only some

of the graduates actually following the ninja path.

Ino closed her eyes, bringing back the sweet memory of the last

few minutes with Naruto...

Soon she was asleep again, and in her dreamless sleep, the birds

songs were nothing... Ino couldn't hear... It was a blissful black haven,

and Ino was enjoying it.

She jerked awake. A noise downstairs. Naruto? No he left, but

maybe he came back.

She shook her head, making her senses come back, and everything

came into perspective. There were voices, two, no three, no, maybe even

four. They weren't bothering to keep their voices down.

Ino stood up slowly, and walked out of the room, using her old ninja

skills to keep as quiet as possible. She leaned against the stair rail, and

tried looking down the hallway for the owners of the voices.

"Hey, princess, what are ya lookin' for?" A harsh voice came from

behind her. She stood up straight, gasping. She remembered now, the

night, all of the people murdered, were these cops? No, they couldn't

be...

A rough hand covered Ino's mouth, and she tried screaming, and

fighting, but in the hand was a white cloth.

Ino felt her consciousness slipping away...


	6. This Isn't Good

"What do we do now?" A voice asked.

"We wait. Shikamaru-Sama asked us of that, and that's what we'll

do," Another voice asked.

"Should we do something with her?" The first voice asked. "To, uh,

keep ourselves, you know, entertained?"

"No, he asked that we do nothing," The second voice said.

Both voices were male, but they made no sense.

Ino slowly cracked open one eye, and looked around. She found

herself laying on a dirty floor of a house that seemed abandoned.

Wait a second, she thought, closing her heavy eyelids. Did they say

Shikamaru?

Ino tried sitting up, but found she was bound and gagged. The

material in her mouth was gross, as though it was dirty as the floor, and

had never seen a drop of water since it was made.

She tried making a noise, but found her lungs were working hard

enough for her to breath, let alone for her to speak, or make any kind of

noise. Her whole body was weak and felt heavy.

"Well, well, well," A deep male voice said. It sounded as though it

was close to her face, and smelled like it too. Ino could smell the

cigarettes and beer. She coughed as the person blew in her face. The

piece of cloth came out of her mouth, and she coughed onto the floor.

"Look who's awake," The male said. Ino looked to see who it was.

She didn't know him, but he was big and bulky. It was amazing he was

able to move at all. It looked like all he ate was steroids.

"Whe... Na...to?" Ino asked, her body and mind working hard to

produce and say the words. "Tel... e..."

"I don't think I speak your language, doll," The man picked her up.

He was tall, much taller than Ino, because her feet left the floor, and the

man was holding her by her shoulders.

He tried to kiss Ino, but a voice cracked through the air like a whip.

"Leave her," The voice said. It sounded familiar. "Put her down,

now."

He walked closer, and turned Ino's face towards his, laughing at her

struggling.


	7. Shika, You Bad, Bad Boy!

"Shikamaru," Ino growled. "What... you... with me?"

"What do I want with you?" Shikamaru repeated, pretending to

think. The man holding her dropped her, and she fell to her knees. "What

do I want with you?" He repeated. "What do I want? Well, put simply,

you."

Ino glared at Shikamaru. "You... killed... those people," Her speech

was coming back faster now. "Naruto... When he... finds out... I'm gone...

kidnapped... He'll save me... and throw... you... in jail."

"Will he now?" Shikamaru asked mockingly. Ino tried looking away,

and Shikamaru slapped Ino, and she fell.

Unable to stop herself with her hands, her head smashed against

the floor. She squirmed on the dirty floor, as tears flowed freely from her

crystal blue eyes. Little black and white stars were dancing around her

vision and she felt as though she would throw up.

"That's what you get for resisting me," Shikamaru laughed. His two

other partners laughed as well, but sounded as though they didn't get

the joke. "Now, time for serious business."

Shikamaru picked Ino back up off the floor, and slapped her once

more, but didn't let her go. "Now listen to me; Your precious Naruto is

going to have a little... accident... If you don't agree to become mine, I'll

blame it on you... After all..." He came extremely close to Ino's face, "I'm a

famous reporter. _Everyone_ believesme."

Then why don't I? Ino thought, revolting how close Shikamaru was

getting.

Ino couldn't stop it. Shikamaru forced his lips onto hers. Too afraid

to resist, Ino let him do what he wanted. It wasn't the same as Naruto,

though. It couldn't be, nothing compared to that.

Finally he stopped, and threw Ino against the wall. Again, her head

hit the wall, and she sat in a crumpled heap at the bottom, crying and

almost passing out.

"Na...ru...to..." Ino cried out. "Help... me..."

"I will," A warm, familiar voice whispered in her ear.

Ino gasped, but her mind said 'No more,' And she lost all

consciousness.


	8. Kick His Butt!

First thing's first, I'm VERY sorry that I took so long to write this (Stupid school started

again)

Anyways!

Okay, so, to you who already know who the mysterious voice is: Read on! If you don't…

Read on! I'm also very sorry if you figured it out right away, but it was kinda obvious,

and that the chapter was

VERY short, I wrote it late at night, and I wasn't feeling too creative, otherwise NO ONE

would have figured out the voice… Or maybe they would… Sorry, I'll continue! XP

Oh, one more thing (Don't groan!) Half of this chapter will be written from the

mysterious voice's point of view, and the other half will be Ino's point of view (Not first

person though… Um… Just read it!).

This might be a little short. SORRY! I'll write one that's longer when I get back.

"YOU!" Shikamaru shrieked, flinging his hands up in the air, as though he were

celebrating. "How did you get in…?"

"How did I get in? Simple, the door was unlocked," Naruto grabbed Ino's hand and tried

pulling her up… She wouldn't budge.

Shikamaru laughed. "Having a hard time? I guess you would," He walked over to Naruto.

"Weakling."

"That won't work," Naruto laughed. "I've gotten over that. No matter what you call me,

I'm here to save Ino."

"You won't get past me!" Shikamaru laughed. "There's no way you could! You have to

carry her, first of all, and second…" Naruto dropped Ino, looking stunned. "You've

fallen victim to my Kage Mane no Jutsu."

Naruto grunted, trying to move even his pinky finger.

I must do this, he thought. I must move and save Ino, and get rid of this… This…

"You know," Shikamaru started, looking unconcerned, and moving his arms in a careless

way, Naruto echoing his movements. "I could make you do anything I

wanted, I could even make you kill her," He said, making Naruto walk over to Ino and

take out a kunai. "I could make you kill yourself," The knife moved close to Naruto's neck. "But I won't do that."

He released Naruto from his shadow technique.

As he sat on the floor beside Ino, he quickly said, "I bet I could get out of here all on my

own, whilst you need a whole army of jocks to back you up because you're too lazy to do

anything yourself."

"I'm too lazy to do anything myself?" Shikamaru repeated, sounding childish, trying to

copy Naruto's voice. "I killed all those people… By myself."

"You're the one?" Naruto asked. "You're the reason why Ino's in so much trouble? Let

me clarify, you killed all of the people in the lobby, and pinned it all on Ino?"

"Yes," Shikamaru nodded, chuckling darkly. "And that's not all…"

"What…?" Naruto asked, looking terrified at Shikamaru, and protecting Ino from

anything he might attempt.

"You're not Naruto," Shikamaru said, laughing again. "I know because Naruto would

have been easy prey to my Kage Mane no Jutsu," He walked over to Naruto, looking

down at him. "He was too…"

"Well, you're right, I guess," Naruto said, shrugging, cutting him off. "I'm not Naruto.

He is," Naruto said, pointing behind Shikamaru.

"Right, I'll turn around, and you'll punch me, right?" Shikamaru asked, looking a little

wary.

"I'd turn around if I were you," Naruto warned.

"Ha!" He laughed. "As if…" Shikamaru fell to the ground as someone hit him hard on

the side of the head.

Naruto, who was in front of Shikamaru, burst into smoke, and the Naruto behind

Shikamaru said, "'Ha, as if,' what?"

He picked up Ino, and ran up the flight of creaky stairs, and ran out to his parked mini

cooper, and put Ino gently in. He quickly performed Kage bunshin no Jutsu, surrounding

the car with many clones of himself, and ran back into the house. He knew he could get

out, now he'd have to go back in and try to bring Shikamaru to jail… Impossible? Not for

Naruto.

Ino woke up, and saw many blond heads surrounding the car she was in. She thought for

a second they were going to attack.

Wait, her mind scolded her. Heads attacking? Don't be such a baka.

I've seen this, Ino thought in her pounding mind. She tried sitting up, but felt something

sharp poke into her brain. I hate headaches, she thought, laying back down. I've seen this

car, where though?

Who was that? Where am I? Wait, she took a second glance at the heads. Naruto? She

thought excitedly. He saved me? Where is he now though?

POOF!

The many heads disappeared, and Ino almost screamed. Her aching head stopped her

from making any noise at all.

Why did they disappear? She wondered, sitting up, and wondering how many bones were

broken. She leaned towards the window, and before she could register the gritty, small,

ugly house before her, she gasped and laid back down. One, two, three, four…

Shikamaru threw me really hard against that wall, didn't he?

Her knee, shin, ankle and wrist were all throbbing with pain, and as Ino looked at them,

they were at a strange angle.

She couldn't stand it… This… Sight of… broken…

She fainted… Once again.

IN THE HOUSE

Naruto snuck into the house, making the door creak as little as possible. He wanted this

done and over with.

Down here, and… Naruto looked down the basement stairs at the empty room… EMPTY

ROOM!

Naruto turned, as though in slow motion, towards the voice now saying, "You need to

sharpen your senses."

Bam! Naruto flew from one end of the room to the other, and smashed against the

opposite wall, turning to smoke.

"What the…?" Shikamaru gasped. "I could have sworn…"

"Sworn what?" Naruto's voice came from somewhere above Shikamaru. "You need to

sharpen your senses."

He threw himself on top of Shikamaru, forcing him to the ground, and punched him, just

once, but with such immense power, that Shikamaru was knocked immediately

unconscious.

"Well, that's done," Naruto said, dusting off his hands, and dragging Shikakmaru by the

collar out the front door.

He shoved Shikamaru roughly into the back of his mini cooper, and slipped some plastic

handcuffs on him.

He got into the front of the car, and noticed Ino's arm and leg.

"Oh, not good!" He started the car. If he called an ambulance, it would most certainly

come too late.

He drove top speed to the police department. He came to a screeching halt, and then

thought… Wait until Shikamaru was put under arrest, and let Ino suffer, or put Ino into

the hospital and let Shikamaru escape?

He grunted. "I have hardly any chakra left, will this work? I hope so," He made hand

signs. "Kage bunshin no Jutsu!"

Only one Naruto appeared. He took Ino into the hospital, while the other Naruto took

Shikamaru into the police department.

Naruto ran, tears building up in his eyes. If he'd only been there, Ino wouldn't be hurt,

and she wouldn't have been kidnapped. It was all his fault…

"Ino, I'm sorry," He whispered as he fell to his knees, right outside of the emergency

doors.

He saw Ino's face, and nurses running out to them as he fell unconscious.


	9. In The Hospital

Okay! I wrote this one right after the last one because I'm leaving for a ski trip! Yay! Kimberly's going to Kimberley, ha ha, I think that's funny… ha… ha… ahem

This one's going to be short, and it's not the last one, even if it sounds like it!

ANYHOO!

"Too much chakra used up," A voice said.

"And this one?" Another asked.

"I don't know, but she looks pretty beat up, maybe it was abuse, who knows," The first

voice said.

"Abuse?" The second voice asked. "Not from… Him?"

"Maybe," The first voice said. "Fame and fortune get to peoples heads. Maybe a one

night stand gone wrong…"

"But… But," The second voice whined. "He brought her to the emergency doors, and

it's… It's _him_ for goodness sake! Why would he…?"

"I don't know how rich men work, okay?" The first voice snapped.

Ino's eyes opened slowly.

An elderly nurse was standing beside her, and a taller nurse was standing with her back to

them.

The nurse standing beside Ino jumped. "Goodness! You're awake! Are you alright? I

guess not, dumb question. You're pretty beat up honey."

None of this made sense to Ino. Where was she? It felt as though she asked herself that a

million times that day. "Where am I? Where's Naruto?"

"You're in the hospital, and Naruto-sama's right next to you, dear," The elderly nurse

smiled as she put a cold cloth on Ino's forehead.

A doctor walked in. He seemed to be younger than the nurses, but not by much.

"Mmkay, so broken growth plate in the wrist," He said, not looking up. "The cast's on?

Good," He said, making a note on his clip board without waiting for an answer.

"Shattered shin, the knee's okay, but the cap got a little bruised, and for her ankle? She

won't be walking on that for a while."

He seemed to be talking to himself, and Ino felt sick as she knew he was talking about

herself.

"And the almighty Naruto-sama," He said with a sarcastic tone to him voice. "Too much

chakra is gone, I'm afraid he'll die."

"What?" Ino shrieked, sitting up. Her head pounded, and her broken body screamed at

her, but she continued glaring at the doctor with unfocused eyes.

"Oh, you're awake?" He said, not looking at her. "Good, okay, well, Naruto-sama has no

family to speak of, and so, there's no one to call. No one really cares, do they? Well,

everyone except the charities."

"I care!" Ino yelled at the doctor, anger boiling in her stomach, and making her feel sick.

The nurse grabbed the bucket just in time.

She helped Ino lay back down.

"Now, don't try sitting up again, you can't throw up anymore," She said in a kind,

motherly voice.

"Well, I don't know what kind of medication to give Naruto-sama that might help even

the littlest bit," He didn't seem to be sad, or mad, or have any other emotions that Ino was

feeling at the moment. He was just so… So… Monotone about the whole thing.

"Yeah, like my mom used to say, the only thing that a person can REALLY look forward

to in life is death."

Ino gasped, and laid there, feeling guilt. She put Naruto through this whole thing, and he

saved her, only to risk his own life. Did he really use that much chakra trying to save her?

Ino closed her eyes, trying to think. Did Iruka-Sensei say ANYTHING about restoring

chakra at top speed?

Think, she told herself. THINK!

She couldn't recall anything, so she opened her wet eyes again, staring at the ceiling,

tears running down her face, leaving cold lines behind.

The doctor left, and the nurse who was looking over Naruto left behind him.

The nurse looking over Ino tutted, and turned towards her. As soon as she saw the tears

leaking out of Ino's eyes, she walked over, and said in a soothing voice, "Don't mind

him, that doctor is a little harsh sometimes. He exaggerates things to an extreme point."

She wiped away Ino's tears with a Kleenex, and said quietly, "I'm sure Naruto-sama will

be just fine, after all, he's been through worse, hasn't he?"

Ino nodded, true he had been through worse, but still… There was always that little

percent…

The nurse left, and left Ino to sleep. Ino looked to her left, and saw out the window, a

crystal blue day. She looked to her right, and saw Naruto. He looked peaceful, even with

the breathing tube around his nose, and the life saving equipment around him.

She smiled as the medication took her into a world of hallucinations and wondered if

she'd meet Naruto there.

Sorry it was so short!

I promise I'll write one that's longer when I get back, okay?

Review!

Umm… Yeah, I know what it's like to be confused and wake up in the hospital, 'cause it happened to me when I got hit by a car (I officially don't like Subaru's anymore! Ha ha!)

Anyways, I'll be back! Moo haa! … Yeah…


	10. The End!

Naruto woke up to the clicking and puffing of the equipment around him. He felt weak, weaker than he had in a

long time.

He had wondered where he was. Somewhere like a hospital… What happened?

His mind clicked as he remembered falling and then passing out.

Right, he thought. But where am I now? Something happened, I know it, it's not good, what was it?

Another click. Shikamaru flashed across his mind and so did the basement. Something felt wrong.

He got away, Naruto thought, his insides churning with anger. He got away. I didn't make it in time. I passed out

too soon, and the shadow replication didn't get into the building. I can feel it. Shikamaru's still out there,

somewhere. Ino's in danger… Ino can't go back…

"INO!" Naruto yelled as he sat up, the equipment following him. The breathing tube snapped and fell off. A

nurse came rushing into the room. She was elderly and had a motherly look on her face.

"Oh," She said, surprised. "Naruto-sama, you're awake!"

"Ino! Where is she? Is she alright? What happened? Did she…"

The nurse pointed to Naruto's left, and he turned to see Ino, sleeping peacefully. He sighed as he laid back

down, the nurse helping him.

"So she's alright? Has she woken up yet? What day is it? What time is it?"

"Yes, Ino-sama's alright. You've only been here for four hours young man, and you'll be staying here for much

longer if you don't relax. You used up all your chakra."

"All my…?" Naruto asked, his face puzzled. "I can't've used up all my chakra."

But you did, a voice whispered darkly in the back of Naruto's mind. All of yours, at least. It seems you've lost

your ability to use mine. Not that I mind, the voice smiled evilly.

What? Naruto thought. That doesn't make any sense.

Yes it does, the voice said, purring contently. And good old Kyuubi won't be there to help you when you do it

again. The girl will die anyways, so what if it's a little early? How about saving yourself?.

Naruto froze. Shut up, he growled. Shut up.

The voice stopped, and Naruto came back to reality.

"… And you might have to stay here for a few days. As for Ino-sama, she'll have problems walking for the next

couple of months," The nurse said, bustling around the room, checking on Ino, and then replacing the breathing

tube on Naruto.

"You need sleep," The nurse said, walking back over to Naruto after giving Ino water. "You need to rest well,

and then you'll be fine."

Naruto nodded. He laid down slowly, his head pounding from a sudden head rush.

Something was wrong…

He shook his head. He was safe, Ino was safe… Were his nerves just rattled perhaps? No, something was

definitely wrong. It worried him.

He closed his ocean blue eyes, and thought hard. Something was missing, but what was it? For once in his life,

he wished he were Neji, or (He shuddered) Sasuke, someone who could see through these things.

Shikamaru, I swear I'll make you pay, he thought. A small voice in the back of his head added: Yeah! Believe it!

"Naruto-kun?" A small, weak voice came from his left. He opened his eyes, and saw Ino staring sleepily at him.

"Yes? Are you alright?" He asked, looking scared as well as worried.

"I'm fine. What's the matter?" She asked, her eyes full of concern. "You look apprehensive."

"I… Um… It's nothing," He said, looking away. Man! He growled to himself. He couldn't stop it. "Ino, I think

Shikamaru… No, I _know_ Shikamaru got away. I accidentally let him get away. I can feel something wrong, and

I could almost swear that he's in this hospital. He's going to come after me. I don't want to put you in danger. I

can't get you out of this room without drawing attention to the fact that he's after you. It'll bring questions, and

that will get you in trouble. What I need to do is prove that Shikamaru is guilty without him getting to the police

first and telling them that you're the one who killed those people," He quickly choked. "I mean, he'll lie and say

you killed those people, when really he did. He admitted it to me before in the house."

Ino looked openmouthed at Naruto.

He turned back, looking at the ceiling, trying to think hard…

Everything went black. Naruto thought he had past out, but, no, he couldn't have, he wouldn't be panicking right

now…

"Naruto-kun!" Ino's voice yelped. He heard a loud crash as something fell over.

"Ino!" Naruto yelled, trying to get up.

He felt himself get pushed back into the pillows as a voice practically sang in his ear, "I've come to kill you."

"Oof!" He was winded as something heavy collided with his stomach. Gasping for breath, Naruto grabbed the

persons hair, and threw them against the wall. He knew it was successful as he heard a crunch, and a gasp of

pain.

"Naruto!" Ino called again, from somewhere from behind him. He spun around, and called out to Ino, finally

colliding with her.

The clouds covering the full moon were suddenly blown away and the room was illuminated, an elderly nurse

laying sprawled at the foot of the wall. Naruto felt himself freeze up, his whole body just seemed to stop. He

didn't throw Shikamaru against the wall, he had thrown the nurse…

He ran forwards, and tried to awaken the nurse by gently shaking her. He eyes snapped open, and went to grab

Naruto's neck, but he was too quick…

"Nice try Shikamaru," He chuckled softly, into the nurse's ear.

With a quick poof of smoke, Shikamaru sat before him, his leg at an odd angle. "Nice try?" He echoed,

laughing as softly as Naruto.

Naruto felt it as if in slow motion. A terrified scream, the breaking of glass… He spun 'round when the

Shikamaru he was holding disappeared. He stood and ran to the broken window, looking down upon the scene

of Shikamaru holding a struggling Ino in his arms as he made his getaway.

"Why can I never," Naruto climbed onto the window sill. "Catch his stupid tricks?" He quickly thought in his

mind, 'Damn fox, lend me your power, I need it now!'

Nothing happened.

Naruto quickly asked himself, 'Kyuubi, are you mad at me for some reason?'

No answer. No… Anything.

"ARGH!" He yelled as he jumped from the window, slipping on his jacket he had grabbed on the way past. "I'll

get you back, stupid, idiotic, dumb, jack…"

He continued cursing and swearing Shikamaru, Kyuubi, Heaven, Hell and Earth as he gave chase.

He had no clue where Shikamaru was now, but he could faintly hear Ino's screams. Why Shikamaru hadn't

knocked her out by now was beyond Naruto, but he was grateful none-the-least.

"He didn't knock he out because it's a friggin' trap, that's what it is," He growled to himself as he cut through

brush and trees, following Ino's screams.

Finally, they stopped. But Naruto had already caught up with them. A different house sat before him as he

watched Shikamaru and Ino enter. It was the same though; abandoned, dirty and old.

Naruto jumped down from the tree with the agility of a cat, and snuck silently to a small window on the side of

the house. He opened it without so much as a squeak, even though the hinges were rusted beyond repair.

He climbed in, studying his surroundings. He jumped down to the ground, crouching down, and listening hard

for any sound coming from above, behind and beside him. He felt as good as he did when he was using the

damn fox's power.

He heard Ino speaking, her voice high and terrified. "P-Please, d-d-don't, I-I'll d-do anything… P-P-Please…N-

Not t-t-that…"

"Anything?" He heard Shikamaru's amused voice. "Anything, huh?"

Naruto's knuckles cracked, and he felt his nails break his skin as he growled inwardly, thinking of the worst

possible torture for Shikamaru.

He creeped to the door, listening for an opportunity, but not to be too late.

"Damn," He heard Shikamaru's voice curse. Quick footsteps, the door opened to a surprised Naruto, and

Shikamaru drawled, "Won't you come in?"

He's acting like we were having a meeting of some sort, Naruto thought. He walked in, noticing Shikamaru

pointing a knife at Ino, and knowing that if he tried anything, she'd get hurt, or worse…

"Well, Naruto, you just ruined my fun," Shikamaru said lightly. "I was going to experiment with Ino. Make her

feel things she had never felt before," He bend low, and said quietly into Ino's ear, but loud enough for Naruto

to hear. "Both good and bad."

Ino gasped, and Shikamaru smiled. Looking at Naruto, trying to see what he was going to do next.

"Well, come at me," Shikamaru said, pointing the knife at Ino again, this time cutting her on the arm.

Naruto just stood and glared. What was there to do? Attack, and Ino was dead, don't attack and Shikamaru

would…

He shuddered.

"Why don't _you_ come at _me_?" He asked, thinking hard, trying to buy time.

"Because I'm intelligent. I'm going to wait for your pathetic move," He laughed slightly, looking at Ino, and

moving the knife up to her cheek. He made a quick cut, and she gasped from shock. Blood ran down her skin,

and Shikamaru seemed very happy to see it. "Ahh, I haven't seen blood since that night. I can't wait to taste

more."

Naruto froze at his words, as did Ino, and Shikamaru leaned down to lick Ino's blood away, and she yelped from

pain, swallowing her scream.

"Stop hurting her!" Naruto yelled, taking a step forwards.

"I will if you come at me. I'll stop hurting her, and end her misery," He looked up at Naruto, crouching beside

Ino. "It won't hurt," He assured Ino. "Well, actually, I wouldn't know, I've never been killed."

"Your filthy soul has," Ino spat in Shikamaru's face.

His face contorted with rage, and backhanded her. She fell to the ground, and Naruto helped her up.

Naruto was surprised, and even more so when Shikamaru said, "Take her. I can't have a woman who's not

scared of me."

TRAP! Naruto's mind yelled at him, and Ino and him turned to leave.

He pushed Ino roughly to the ground as several kunai's past his head.

"Here's the deal," Shikamaru said, spinning a kunai as he walked towards the duo. "You can have her, if you

can get away from me. Simple, right?"

Naruto grasped Ino's wrist, and pulled her up and behind him. He removed his jacket, in his black tee-shirt and

jeans, he stood his full height, and glared at Shikamaru.

"I'll get away, and you'll be locked away," He growled, taking out one of the spare kunai's he kept with him at

all times.

"Oh, will I now?" He asked, mockingly, playing with the kunai. He slowly cut each of his fingers, no blood

escaped though. "Are you sure that I will?"

"Positive!" Naruto smiled menacingly.

"Yeah, you will!" Ino said from Naruto, coming out with a kunai as well. She had taken it from Naruto's

back pocket, and stood in a defensive position. "Believe it!"

Naruto glanced sideways at Ino, smiling slightly.

"Yeah," He said, looking back at Shikamaru, and he smiled as he echoed. "Believe it!"

"Oho!" Shikamaru laughed. "Two against one, is it?"

"Yeah," Ino sneered. "Yeah, it is."

"Actually," Naruto said. "Kage bunshin no Jutsu! Now it's thirty-two against one!"

Thirty Naruto's appeared around Ino and him.

Ino gasped. She quietly said, "I thought you had no chakra left."

"I… Uh…" Naruto stuttered. It was true, hadn't he used up all of his chakra before? How did he have so much

energy, and how was he able to conjure all of these shadow replications? Did Kyuubi finally think of helping

him? No, no he certainly hadn't.

So where did all of this newly-found chakra suddenly appear from?

Ignoring the questions, Naruto quickly told Ino to stay back, and try to escape if she could. Naruto ran towards

Shikamaru as did the shadow replications.

They pounced, and Naruto stabbed Shikamaru in the chest. He turned into an empty crate, smashing on the

ground. Naruto spun around, and one of replications grabbed Shikamaru from behind, holding him firmly.

Naruto took advantage of Shikamaru's disadvantage, and hit a pressure point on his neck, knocking his

unconscious.

The replications disappeared, and Ino squeaked as Naruto fell to the ground.

"NARUTO!" She shrieked. Naruto had fallen to his knees and was having a very hard time breathing. Drawing

each breath was like picking up two tons of metal in each hand at the same time on a black hole.

"Ino…" He gasped. "I'm… Fine… Go… Get… Help… Hurry… I'll keep… Him… Here…"

Ino shook her head. "I can't leave you!"

"Go!" Naruto gasped. "I'll be… Fine… Hurry… Trust me…"

She stood stock still, then nodded. She ran out of the room. Naruto watched her go, and he did his best to

continually hit the spot on Shikamaru's neck so he wouldn't wake up. Naruto had learned that hitting the spot

too many times could lead to an IQ drop. He didn't care.

An hour or so later, the authorities appeared, and Naruto had built up enough chakra to stand up on his own.

Making sure that Shikamaru was locked up was top priority for Naruto at the moment.

As soon as the bar-doors had slammed on the still-unconscious Shikamaru, Naruto and Ino were whisked away

to the hospital to get treated for their current wounds.

As Ino was getting her wound bandaged (Naruto didn't have any physical wounds, so the nurse recommended

him for lots of rest and relaxation) a lawyer walked in the room, and said quickly, and very professionally that

there would be a trail to find Shikamaru guilty within the next week.

A doctor volunteered to drive Naruto and Ino home.

"Actually, could you drive us to the Mente la Creme?" Naruto asked, directing him to the restaurant that Ino and

Naruto had gone to before.

He stopped, and Naruto jumped out, asking for his car from the valet.

"Right away, sir," The valet ran into the parking lot, coming out with Naruto's Ferrari Enzo, just as he had left

it.

Ino and Naruto got in, and he them drove home, slowly.

As soon as he had parked in his garage, he turned to Ino, and said, "I don't think I had any chakra when we were

fighting Shikamaru," He took her hand in his, and looked into her light blue eyes. "I think the power I was

running off was…"

"The fox demon?" Ino asked.

"No," He said quietly. "I needed to save you. The power was my love for you."

!END!

Okay, I'm going to explain a black hole to those who don't know. If you don't, then you were probably like, "What? _On_ a black hole? Doesn't she mean _in_?" My answer? No, actually, because black holes (From what scientist's have found out) are just stars with such immense gravitational pull it draws everything closest to it, in. They just call them 'black holes' because it's very hard to see some of them. It's like a hole in space. Things don't actually disappear because of a black hole, they just get squished flatter than a pancake… Actually, flatter than a hair, or an atom, I dunno, but REALLY flat. (Sorry to those who believe in parallel Universes. I do too, it's just that I believe in science as well! )

I love science, by the way… ' Yay Einstein!

Parallel Universes ROCK! It's cool, 'cause you have a twin, and they're completely opposite from you, so, I guess they wouldn't be your twin, but, they do share your soul… Yeah… (Obsessive --;)

Okay, sorry if it sucked (Like REALLY bad) I kinda ran out of ideas… Obviously…

(BTW, sorry if I seem like I have two personalities. I'm not a Gemini, actually, I'm an Aquarius. Woohoo! It's my birthday tomorrow! January 27th!)

That was the end, and I know it sucked BAD… I'm sorry! I wanted to finish it quickly, because I started another (And it's MUCH better. Watch for it. I have no clue what to call it though… ANYHOO! Watch for it! I'm proud of the next one!)

REVIEW!


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